But how many times did Christ call out one of the Teachers of the faith durring his ministry for missing that which was plainly right before their eyes in scripture? I know what you’re getting at, and of course I agree to an extent.
You have hinted at Scriptural answer- the Pharisees could not be convinced because they had invested so much on their particular interpretations of Scriptures. It is an investment, so to speak. It is a difficult thing, realizing you have been “wrong” and not following God as He intended. Thus, it is much easier to deny things, whether one tries to bully someone, chastise them, make fun of their education, or bring up anti-Catholic zingers that are completely off topic (poisoning the well…) Like “How could you be right, Mr. Catholic, about not being saved by faith alone, you think Mary is practically God…”
And then the never ending avalanche begins, all the misrepresentations of our faith that completely side-track the original point, as another poster has accurately noted…
It is not an easy thing to come to Rome, when so much is invested in swimming away from Rome via their belief system. If we are right, the entire Protestant Reformation is heresy and schism. Who wants to be associated with that??? Thus, the Catholic Church “cannot” be right, in their mind!
Even if the words are right there in front of their face: “But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?” James 2:20
I have come to realize after countless conversations that the issue is emotional, not logical. You can’t expect to get them to see the logic of the situation. That is a work of the Spirit, brother.
But that doesn’t stop one from sitting down, reading and understanding. Most honest, sincer and biblically studious (even if the bible is the only book they’ll read, literally) will eventually drop their beliefs in these theologies, even if they maddenling refuse to state that they’ve done so.
People can “overlook” particular Scriptures that ruin their interpretations. Even when they are pointed out, they ignore them or twist them around or change the subject. Again, this is an emotional issue of not wanting to be wrong. A person seeking the truth will eventually realize their error, but it is not an easy road. Who likes to admit they are wrong, esp. when “they” pride themselves on reading the Bible and knowing what it all means, and then having some “Cath-o-lick” point out a verse they had previously read over and ignored because it didn’t fit into the picture they had already formed.
Case in point, one of my very good friends here is a very sincer very God centered evangelical. …
Human faith is a matter of something more than just utter logical reasoning, my friend. Note that people will even paint themselves into a corner to “defend” what they have built upon sand. I have seen it many times. I even felt sorry and backed off in some cases, because I began to feel that I was crushing this poor person and his entire faith was unraveling. In other words, “if what you are saying is true, than my entire faith in God is destroyed”. It throws their world upside down.
I will presume that you have experienced a faith shattering experience, something that tried your faith and trust in the Lord, whether it was a death in the family, unemployment or some other issue where you initially struggled. It is not a fun thing, and for some of these guys who build upon that one Proclamation - knowing full well that the “OSAS” crowd believes that “maybe you never had it to begin with” calls into question that first Proclamation, ironically! So much for OSAS! They claim “OSAS”, but they don’t really believe it, because then they say a person who ONCE THOUGHT he was saved is not anymore, never was. Hmmph. Maybe they are not saved, either!
… But due his theology, this sincer Evangelical has to convince him self that if you don’t have charity (love) then you don’t have the faith.
I have never heard an appropriate response to 1 Cor 13, it is the big hammer to pull out when someone gets frisky… The Scriptures clearly tell us a man can have a LOT of faith, enough to move a mountain (that’s a lot!), but is nothing without love, CERTAINLY not salvific! James says the same thing in James 2, although they screw around and make it say something it doesn’t, like “justified before man, rather than God”, lunacy, since James uses Abraham’s SOLE experience on the mountain and Genesis clearly says it is GOD who knows (that Abraham is just), not man. But like I said, the human mind has a way of insulating itself against logic when an emotional crisis is reached.
It’s called “being in denial”.
On a personal level, while his belief is not technically accurate, I let it slide. He’s a good sincer Christian, and he’s come to the right conclusion at the end of the day. Even if he explains it and beleives it incorrectly.
Oh, I’m sure he is a good Christian, sincere in his faith, but one can be very sincere and sincerely wrong…
Regards,
Fdesales
